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Hiring a property lawyer for real estate deals on the Hibiscus Coast

A home is the single largest investment or expense that the average person will incur in their life time. Therefore, it makes it all the more important that the whole process of purchasing a home is made as smooth as possible. This will require the services of a lawyer who will protect the interests of the buyer in real estate deals. It is always advisable to find an Orewa, Silverdale or Warkworth real estate lawyer to handle the purchase of a house as they would understand the local rules and regulations regarding this. It is best that the buyer meets the lawyer well in advance rather than at the last minute so they will be ready to handle your case.

Buying a house – image Stuart Miles

Once you have found a suitable house and carried out the negotiations for the price, you should contact your lawyer so they can draw up the contract. For the vast majority of house purchases in Auckland people use the Auckland District Law Society Sale and Purchase Agreement. This means that all parties are aware of the contents of the contract and there are no surprises in the small print. It also reduces the costs for the buyer since it is s standard free document.

However sometimes there will be special clauses inserted by either the buyer or the seller. In fact, as the buyer it is a good idea to include a clause about finance approval for the property. This means that if there is any issue with your mortgage lender, then you can withdraw from the contract without any penalty.

These days it is also a good idea to have the house assessed and checked for illicit drug manufacture, especially as a meth lab. The costs for cleansing a meth lab are massive. The lawyer can check on the background of the property being bought to make sure it was not the subject of any illegal activity. If any illicit activity was carried on, the seller is responsible for any remedial measures to be taken as long as this was raised before the transaction takes place. If the issue is discovered after the purchase, then the buyer will be responsible for the huge clean-up costs.

Your dream home – image photostock

Having said that it is a standard contract, it is still wise to have your property lawyer go through the document before you sign on the dotted line since the terms laid out in the contract are binding in law.

Assuming that the purchase contract is all drawn up and signed, the second part is to arrange for the financing of the house. This is usually done by a mortgage contract directly with a bank or via a mortgage broker.

Once the finance has been agreed by the bank, the buyer’s lawyer interacts with the seller’s lawyer, the real estate agent and the mortgage company to complete the sale transaction. The lawyer will also communicate with the local council after everything has been sealed so that the Title can be registered.

In real estate deals, attention to detail is crucial. The various factors must all be spelled out in detail on the transfer deed. An innocuous thing such as a spelling mistake in the address can have legal repercussions for the agreement and can prove expensive to correct later on.

Brandon Cullen – Commercial and property lawyer

Once all the parts of the deal have agreed and checked, the lawyer then goes about transferring the purchase money to the seller of the property.

If you are looking to buy a home in the Orewa, Silverdale, or Warkworth areas, a highly reputable law firm you can contact is McVeagh Fleming. They are one of the biggest law firms in the Auckland region and have real estate lawyers for Silverdale, Orewa and Warkworth.